South Korea's national health insurance deficit hit a ten-year high of eleven-point-four trillion won last year.

According to the National Health and Insurance Service's data submitted to Rep. Kim Mi-ae of the People Power Party on Sunday, insurance premium revenue totaled 83-point-95 trillion won in 2024, while expenditures for insurance payments reached 95-point-25 trillion won, resulting in a deficit of eleven-point-39 trillion won.

The health insurance balance has been in the red since 2015, with last year's shortfall growing four-point-six times compared to that year.

However, when government subsidies, which account for 13 to 15 percent of annual insurance revenue, along with income from reserve fund operations are factored in, the overall health insurance balance turns into a surplus.

In 2024, total revenue, including 12-point-16 trillion won in government subsidies, amounted to over 99 trillion won, while total expenditures stood at 97-point-36 trillion won, resulting in a surplus of one-point-72 trillion won.